One of the Boys 1 & 2 (Published by Pop Fiction)

Chapter Sixteen

Past

4 years ago

While Apa was ready to let everything go, Ags was having trouble with her academic and personal life. A month after she dumped Ygona, he unexpectedly showed up at their dorm. 

"Why are you here?" Ags asked him. Naiintindihan naman niya si Ygona kung nagalit ito sa kanya dahil siya mismo, galit sa sarili niya. Why did she even agree to date him? Kahit sabihin niyang one day lang 'yun, Ygona was Apa's friend. It was a very wrong decision. Isa pa, unfair din para kay Ygona dahil alam niyang si Apa pa rin. Maling mali na pumayag siya.

"I'm here... to forgive you."

Natawa si Ags. "Really? Sobrang weird mo, alam mo 'yun?"

"I know." Pati si Ygona, naweweirdan sa sarili niya. Kahit gusto niyang h'wag magalit, hindi niya kaya dahil nasaktan talaga siya. It was his first time to expect so much. Kahit gusto niyang umiwas pa para hindi na siya masaktan, hindi niya rin kaya. Hindi niya kayang tiisin si Ags.

"Ygona, I want you to know that no matter what you do, I'll always be here. Magalit ka sa'kin, iwasan mo ako, sure, go ahead. Naiintindihan ko. Hindi mo kailangan pilitin sarili mo-"

"I won't go. Hindi naman kailangan maging tayo, pero h'wag mo akong itaboy. Masyado ng maraming nawala sa'yo. Pag nawala pa ako, baka hindi mo na kayanin. I don't want you to go crazy."

"Are you serious?!" She couldn't stop laughing. "I mean, thank you, pero kasi... Iniisip mo talagang mababaliw ako pag nawala ka? That's funny." She teased. Noong nakita niyang naiinis na ang kaibigan, bigla siyang bumawi. "Joke lang, joke lang. Galit ka na naman, eh. Ano, dinner date? Like the usual? With my dorm mates? I swear, I won't let Zoe flirt with you... or okay lang?" Niloloko pa rin niya si Ygona.

"Hindi na lang, aalis na ko."

"Joke lang, ano ba. Tara na! Kakain lang tayo."

-

Pinakamabilis na natapos kumain si Ags kaya lumabas muna siya. Mukhang nageenjoy naman si Ygona makipag-usap sa boyfriend ni Abby tungkol sa Soccer.

Tumawid siya at naglakad-lakad sa garden. Lahat ng mga puno doon, may mga ilaw. She froze when she saw a shadow behind a tree. 'Yun ang pinakamalaki at pinakamailaw na puno.

She cleared her throat. "Hi? Anybody there?"

She got more nervous when the shadow behind the tree groaned. She felt like she turned to stone when he peeked. Sumandal ang lalaki sa puno habang nakaupo, at pumikit. Umiinom siya ng isang bote ng tequila. 

"Who are you? Why are you at my house?" His voice was husky.

Napataas kilay ni Ags. "House? Excuse me, but as far as I know, this is a public property. This is not a house- your house. Err, are you drunk?"

"Do I look like drunk to you?" 

He was obviously drunk. Hindi pa rin nawawala kaba ni Ags, pero hindi na siya masyadong takot. Mukha naman siyang safe dahil kung delikado yung lalaki, nilapitan na siya nito. Dahan-dahan siyang naglakad sa harapan ng lalaki, pero pagkakita niya, tulog na siya.

She kicked him gently to check if he was just playing with her. "Hey, are you asleep? Huy." Pero hindi nagigising yung lalaki kaya umupo na siya sa harap ng lalaki, her butt wasn't touching the grass.

Iiwan na sana niya yung lalaki, pero napansin niyang may luhang tumutulo galing sa mga mata niya. Umupo ulit si Ags para pag masdan siya.

"Mayaman naman ako, gwapo, masipag, matalino, ano pa bang gusto mo? Ginawa ko na lahat! Wala na nga akong oras para sa sarili ko. Yung natitira kong oras, binigay ko nang lahat sa'yo. Ano pa? Ano pang gusto mo?! Am I not enough? Hindi naman ako kasama sa past mo, sa past niyo, pero ba't nadadamay ako? Dumb. People. Dumb. Me." Dumilat siya, kinuha yung bote ng tequila, at binato sa puno malapit sa kanila kaya napatakip ng tenga si Ags.

Tiningnan siya ng lalaki. "Sino ka?"

"Ag-" Napalunok at napaatras siya dahil biglang umupo yung lalaki. He stared at Ags and narrowed his eyes. She took another step backward. "Whoever you are, matanong nga kita..."

"H-ha?" Hindi naman mukhang harmful yung lalaki. In fact, hindi siya yung mukhang klase ng tao na kailangan mang-rape o manakit ng babae para lapitan siya dahil sa itsura niya, pero dahil sa pag bato niya ng bote at pag lapit niya kay Ags, hindi na maiwasan ni Ags ang matakot. Isa pa, naalala niya yung mga lalaking nagtangka sa kanya. 

The guy asked. "Am I not good enough? Do I look like... someone?" Ayaw lumapit ng sobra ni Ags dahil baka kung ano ang gawin sa kanya.

She gently tapped his shoulder and gulped. "Lasing ka na."

"Pangit ba ako? Wala ba kong kwenta? Magsabi ka nga ng totoo."

Ags rolled her eyes. "You're good-looking." But she was not interested. 

The guy smirked and stared at her longer. "Woman, you're pretty!"

"For your information, my name's not Woman and Whoever You Are. I'm Agath-"

"Are you single? Broken-hearted? Waiting for someone?"

Hindi siya sinagot ni Ags. His statements and questions were getting weirder and creepier. She was about to walk away, but the man said something no one had ever said before.

"I can read you."

She laughed pathetically. Iniisip niyang lasing na talaga yung lalaki.

"You're single. Your heart's broken. You're waiting for someone and you're not sure if he's coming back. You just made a mistake. You don't have a lot of friends... or maybe you have, but they're different. Are they mostly boys? Or a bunch of weird people? You just don't seem to click with a lot of women. They thought you're a slut. Am I right?"

Bumalik si Ags sa harapan ng lalaki. "Can you really read me?"

Tumayo na yung lalaki at pinagpag yung dumi sa pants niya. Tiningnan niyang mabuti si Ags at ngumiti. "Stupid. You're the most transparent person I've ever met." Kinuha niya yung bag niya at tumalikod. "Bye, Agatha." He walked away, leaving Ags dumbfounded.